Random Reminiscences of Men and Events eBook

to proceed further with the attempt. The
father, however, insisted upon going on, and the surgeon
then exposed the radial artery in the surgeon’s
wrist, and was obliged to dissect it back about
six inches, in order to pull it out far enough
to make the connection with the child’s vein.

“This part of the work the surgeon
who did it afterward described as the ‘blacksmith
part of the job.’ He said that the child’s
vein was about the size of a match and the consistency
of wet cigarette paper, and it seemed utterly
impossible for anyone to successfully unite these
two vessels. Dr. Carrel, however, accomplished
this feat. And then occurred what the doctors
who were present described as one of the most
dramatic incidents in the history of surgery.
The blood from the father’s artery was released,
and began to flow into the child’s body,
amounting to about a pint. The first sign of
life was a little pink tinge at the top of one
of the ears, then the lips, which had become
perfectly blue, began to change to red, and then
suddenly, as though the child had been taken from a
hot mustard bath, a pink glow broke out all over
its body, and it began to cry lustily. After
about eight minutes the two were separated. The
child at that time was crying for food. It was
fed, and from that moment began to eat and sleep
regularly, and made a complete recovery.

“The father appeared before a
legislative committee at Albany, in opposition
to certain bills which were pending at the last session
to restrict animal experimentation, and told this
incident, and said at the close that when he
saw Dr. Carrel’s experiments he had no
idea that they would so soon be available for saving
human life; much less did he imagine that the
life to be saved would be that of his own child.”

THE FUNDAMENTAL THING IN ALL HELP

If the people can be educated to help themselves,
we strike at the root of many of the evils of the
world. This is the fundamental thing, and it
is worth saying even if it has been said so often that
its truth is lost sight of in its constant repetition.

The only thing which is of lasting benefit to a man
is that which he does for himself. Money which
comes to him without effort on his part is seldom
a benefit and often a curse. That is the principal
objection to speculation—­it is not because
more lose than gain, though that is true—­but
it is because those who gain are apt to receive more
injury from their success than they would have received
from failure. And so with regard to money or
other things which are given by one person to another.
It is only in the exceptional case that the receiver
is really benefited. But, if we can help people
to help themselves, then there is a permanent blessing
conferred.